Smriti Mandhana Awarded ICC Women’s Player of the Year

TAUNTON, ENGLAND - JUNE 29: India batsman Smriti Mandhana celebrates her century with Mona Meshram during the ICC Women's World Cup 2017 match between West Indies and India at The County Ground on June 29, 2017 in Taunton, England. (Photo by Stu Forster/Getty Images)

Indian Women’s cricket player Smriti Mandhana became the recipient of the best international cricketer of the year. The 21-year old received the title at the BCCI awards ceremony organised in Bengaluru. She had a stellar World Cup campaign, following it up with good performances in South Africa.

Meanwhile, Women’s team skipper Harmanpreet Kaur was named women’s Cricketer of the Year for the 2016-17 season. The Board of Control of Cricket in India organised the ceremony to honour players for excellence at the international and domestic level.

On the Men’s front, Virat Kohli was awarded the Polly Umrigar award for best player for two seasons. Smriti Mandhana also received the player of the year for the 2017-18 season.

Smriti Mandhana

Mandhana has established herself as one of the most prolific players in the Indian team. She was awarded a Rs 1.5 lakh cheque and a trophy as well. Skipper Harmanpreet Kaur was also given recognition for her performances in the 2016-17 season.

What made Mandhana a deserving winner was the fact that she had to comeback from injury. But she took the Women’s Cricket World Cup by storm with solid performances with the willow. With 2 centuries under her belt, she cemented her spot in the national side.

In South Africa, earlier in 2018, Mandhana was one of the highest run-getters for the Indian side. However, her dream run ended in the Women’s Asia Cup T20. She failed to impress as India failed to lift the trophy after getting toppled by Bangladesh in the finals. It was the first time that India did not win the tournament.

Out of 6 games, Mandhana amassed 90 runs in 6 games with her best performance against Pakistan. She played a sensible knock of 38 runs in a low scoring semi-final game which saw India outclass Pakistan by 7 wickets.

The award will be a massive boost for her confidence as she will surely help elevate the game to the level of their male counterparts.